Sinn Fein Chairperson Mitchel McLoughlin, speaking from the ANC
conference in South Africa today congratulated Thabo Mbeiki on
his election as President of the ANC and looked forward to
building the close relationship which already exists with
President Mandela and the ANC.

Mr. McLaughlin said:

``I congratulate President Mbeiki on his election as President of
the ANC. He is indeed a worthy successor to Nelson Mandela. I
look forward to building on the relationship we have with
President Mandela and the ANC.

``When he spoke last night, President Mbeiki made clear his
interest in Ireland as he quoted from the W.B. Yeats poem `Easter
1916.' He named all the leaders of the Easter Rising and spoke of
England's destructive role in Ireland. He used the Yeat's poem
with its line, A Terrible Beauty is Born, to illustrate the ANC's
struggle. He spoke of how Mandela and the ANC leaders had not
allowed themselves to be either broken or hardened by their
experiences under apartheid but had used them to more forward
determined to build the new South Africa.

``Irish republicans have always taken great inspiration from the
courage of the people of South Africa. This reflects not just
their success in attaining freedom but their present work in
reconstruction and reconciliation. This is something that all the
parties in Ireland can learn from.''

``During the week the Sinn Fein delegation have met representatives
of political parties from throughout the African continent,
learning from their experience of overcoming colonialism.''